God is Our Refuge
Author: Shannon McBrayer
March 15, 2023
God Is Our Refuge
I titled this blog “God Is Our Refuge” and I hope to bring encouragement to your life by sharing how we can stand on God’s promises and walk boldly in Him, knowing we can run to Him at any time. God is our refuge.
Psalm 46:1 says: "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble."
I love this scripture, an “ever-present” help, that means there is not one moment of our lives where we are alone in anything. Is says, God is our refuge, let’s look at the definition of refuge: a condition of being safe or sheltered from pursuit, danger, or trouble. That is so encouraging and comforting to me.
A condition of being safe, that is the condition I want to be in! Sometimes we just need to feel safe. As we are still early into this year, there is excitement and possibilities just waiting around the corner, but there might also be some overwhelming thoughts about the "what-ifs", or trials that might be ahead.
Some of us have a fear of the unknown. Whatever your thoughts and feelings are, remember this, we have the spirit of the Lord dwelling within us, ready to help in all our decisions and strengthening us through all challenges. Head into this year with the confidence that he created you, He knows you and who you are meant to become.
Psalm 139:16 says “Your eyes beheld my substance. In your book were written all the days that were formed for me, when none of them as yet existed.”
This scripture reminds us that we have purpose! You were born on purpose, according to God. He has already written and read the book that is you. That is amazing to me.
I am reminded when there was a time in my life that I was running scared. I was so lost and truly felt like I did not have a purpose on this earth. I was very discouraged. As I am sure some of you can relate. I am so thankful for scriptures and encouraging songs that I could go to in my time of desperation.
Even though I had kids, I legitimately thought they would be better without me. This is the deception, right? When we are down, these are the lies the enemy whispers to us. “Everyone would be better if you were not here. You are so much trouble, there is always something wrong. Why don’t you do yourself and them a big favor”. If you don’t know how to battle that, it can swallow you.
I am very blessed that I still maintained a dialog with the Lord. He showed me my worth in many ways. And No, I did not always see a way out of my circumstances but knowing that I belonged to God gave me a thread to hold on to. If you have any of these thoughts, number one. You need to recognize who is saying them to you. It is definitely not God. He wrote a whole book telling you how he loves you and how he will deliver and comfort you.
So, if it’s not God, it’s the enemy. The devil is a liar, period. His mission is to kill, steal and destroy you. One of his biggest and most effective methods is manipulation. Look how he seduced Eve in the garden with lies that sounded like good things. When you find yourself listening to those things, go to the Bible, the word of God, and tell the enemy, "NO, this is what GOD says about me. You are a liar."
Get into battle mode, friend. You gotta fight.
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